Baseball: Japan skipper Ibata wants Ohtani with team before March warm-ups

Japan manager Hirokazu Ibata hopes Los Angeles Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani can join the national team before World Baseball Classic warm-up games in early March in Osaka.Speaking to the media Tuesday at Major League Baseball's Winter Meetings in Orlando, Florida, the skipper said if Ohtani can land ahead of the games on March 2 and 3, it will give him a similar amount of preparation time as he had before the last tournament in 2023."I'd like him to get into shape while adjusting to the time difference before polishing things in the two games," said Ibata, who took over after the…READ FULL ARTICLE